Improvement in straw-cutters



y W. v. & 11.11. DEVAULT.

Straw-Gutter N0.1;99,808. Patented Jan. 29,1878.

wnuiss s= I za zwrfiw P ETERS PROfO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON, D, (L

UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFF-ICE.

WILLIAM v. 'DEVAULT'AND DICK J. DEVAULT, on JOHNSON crrn rnnn.

' IMPROVEMENT IN STRAW-C'UTTERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 199,808, dated January29, 1878 application filed December 13, 1877.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WILLIAM V. Dn- VAULT and D101: J .DEvAUL'r, ofJohnson City, in the county of Washington and State of Tennessee, haveinvented a new and Improved Straw-Cutter; and we do hereby declare thatthe following is afull, clear, and exact description of the same,reference being had to the accompanying (drawing, forming part of thisspecification, in which- Figure 1 is a front end view. Fig. 2 is a planview with a part of the box broken away.

Our invention relates to an improvement in straw-cutters designed tosecure a greater sliding motion for the edge of the knife inproportionto the elevation of its lever, and hence a cleaner out withless expenditure of power.

The improvement consists in the particular construction and arrangementof the handlever, knife, and gage-bar, so relatively connected as tosecure in combination an improved lever action; and in the peculiararrangement of the mouth of the feed-box, designed to increase itscapacity and t0 co-operate with the knife to produce a better out, ashereinafter more fully described.

In the drawing, A A represent two vertical standards, connected by across-bar, A, upon which the mouth of the box rests, and which, inconnection with a T-shaped base, a rear standard, and a diagonal brace,constitutes the supporting-frame of the machine.

B is the box, which is constructed with straightparallel sides, insteadof tapering ones, as: usual, to give a greater capacity at the mouth ofthe box for larger bundles of straw, oats, fodder, &c. To centralizesaid bundle in the mouth of the cutter, without regard to the size ofthesame, and to produce a better cutting action, as will be hereinafterexplained, we arrange in the box, upon each side, tapering angle-boardsO, which subtend the angle formed byKthe sides and bottom of the box,and taper from a point near the rear to such a width?at the front ormouth of the box as to reachfup to the top of the sides and to meet inthe middle to form a central angle at the bottom. These angle-boardsserve also to brace and strengthen the sides of the box.

Over the mouth of the box are transverse boards D, arranged after themanner of aroof, whose outer edge is flush with the outer edge of thebox, and between which and an outer guide, E, the knife F moves. Thisguide E is made in one piece of cast metal, and corresponds in shape tothe boards D and the side of the mouth of the box, being suitably fixedin place by screws.

G is the hand-lever, which is pivoted to one of the standards A upon oneside of the box, and is then extended, in either angular or curvedshape, transversely across the box until its handle rests convenientlyabove the opposite standard A. This lever is pivoted to the knife at a,and its construction and arrangement, it will be seen, enable us to geta greater vertical movement of the knife with a given vertical movementof the lever.

H is the gage-bar, which is loosely pivoted to the lower end of theknife, and pivoted also below to the base. This bar is provided with abroad face at its upper end, which, when the knife is elevated, israised to a position opp'o site the mouth of the box, as shown in dottedlines, where it defines the length of the cut by acting as a stop to thebundle as it is pushed forward.

In relation to this gage-bar, we do not claim it broadly, as it hasheretofore been arranged to act in. unison with a knife and lever. Whenit is pivoted at the bottom to the base, however, and is looselyconnected with the bottom of the knife, the latter loosely pivoted tothe hand-lever, and this, in turn, bent as described, and pivoted to theside of one of the standards below the top of the box, it will be seenthat the lever-knife and gage-bar form together a A double toggle-jointat a and I), which not only enables the operator to cut with a lessexpenditure of power, but also gives a greater vertical movement and agreater sliding or shear cut for the knife. With this particulararrangement of the knife the mouth of the box has a special co-action,when constructed as described, for the reason that it holds the bundlein the box against the tendency of the inclined knife to push it up overthe side of the bar, and also makes the resisting edge better adapted tothe shear of the knife.

Itwill also be seen, from the peculiar angular or circular hand-lever,that upon its eieva-' 2. The box B,provided with tapering angletion thehand of the operator, instead of being boards 0 and a roof portion 1),in combination raised vertically or behind him, as is the case with aknife and actuating-lever, substantially with straight hand-levers, iscarried or raised as described. forward in a natural and easy position.v

' Having thus described our invention, what WILLIAM V. DEVAULT. we claimas new is-' DICK J. DEVAULT.

1. The lever G, pivoted upon one side of the box below the top ofthesame, and bent over Witnesses: to the other side, ineombination withthe knife J. 0. KING, F, gage-bar H, and box B,substantial1yin the T. A.FAW. manner and for the purpose described.

